Graduation cap



June 13, 1961 R. M. MILLS ETAL GRADUATION CAP 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Dec. 11, 1958 INVENTORS.

RICHARD M. MILLS a BY DONALD A. WOLF ATTORNEYS June 13, 1961 R. M. MILLS EIAL 2,937,731

GRADUATION CAP Filed Dec. 11, 1958 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTORS.

RICHARD M. MILLS 8 l2 8 BY DONALD A. WOLF ATTORNEYS United States PatentO f 2,987,731 GRADUATION CAP Richard M. Mills, Cleveland, and Donald A. Wolf, Beachwood Village, Ohio, assignors to Ward-Hall Corporation, Cleveland, Ohio, a corporation of Ohio Filed Dec. 11, 1958, Ser. No. 779,773 3 Claims. (Cl. 2197) This invention relates generally to graduation caps, but has reference more particularly to caps of this nature which are made of inexpensive materials.

A primary object of the invention is to provide a cap of the character described, in which novel means are provided for assembling the crown of the cap with the top of the cap.

Another object of the invention is to provide a cap of the character described, in which a top is provided, which is of unique and advantageous construction.

A further object of the invention is to provide a cap of the character described, in which novel means are provided for effecting adjustment of the crown to various head sizes, and for locking the crown in adjusted position.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a cap of the character described, which may be assembled without the use of metallic fasteners, such as staples or the like.

Other objects and advantages of our invention will be apparent during the course of the following description.

In the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specification, and in which like numerals are employed to designate like parts throughout the same,

FIG. 1 is a plan view of the top of the cap;

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the bottom of the cap, before assembly of the crown with the top;

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view, taken on the line 3-3 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a view similar to FIG. 2, but with the crown assembled with the top;

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view, taken on the line 5-5 of FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a fragment, on an enlarged scale, of FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is a fragmentary elevational view of the rear portion of the crown, showing one of the adjusting means, and

FIG. 8 is a view of the blank used for the crown.

Referring more particularly to the drawings, the cap will be seen to comprise a substantially rigid square top 1, having secured to the underside thereof a substantially rigid part 2, of substantially the same contour as the part 1, but provided centrally thereof with an oval-shaped opening 3, the major axis of which extends through one pair of diagonally-opposed corners of the part 2, and the minor axis of which extends through the other pair of diagonally-opposed corners of the part 2.

The parts 1 and 2, which thus form the top of the cap, and which are made of cardboard or other suitable material, may be secured to each other, as by means of a covering 4, of thin paper or the like, which is adhesively secured to the outer surfaces of the parts 1 and 2, and serves as a binding for the edges of these parts. The covering 4 is also provided with an oval-shaped opening 5, which is of the same dimensions as the opening 3, and is in registration with said opening.

Alternatively, the covering 4 may be omitted, and the parts 1 and 2 may be secured to each other at their marginal edge portions, as by means of adhesive, the adhesive extending inwardly to such a distance, as to leave an area A, bordering the openings 3 and 5, in which the parts 1 and 2 are not secured together.

The part 2 of the top is also provided with a tongue 6 which extends inwardly into the opening 3, along the ma- Patented June 13, 1961 jar axis of the opening, and the function of which will be presently described.

The cap also comprises a cardboard part 7, shown in fiat blank form in FIG. 8, and which, when assembled with the other parts of the cap, is adapted to fit about the head of the user or wearer, and thus form the side or crown of the cap.

The blank 7 is wider at its two ends than at the middle thereof and has one of its long edges 8 of a contour similar to that of the familiar brace or bracket which is pointed in the middle thereof, as at 9, this edge 8 being the lower edge of the crown of the cap when in completed form, as shown in FIG. 5 of the drawings. The other long edge 10 of the blank is provided with tongues 11, which are of a length such as to be insertable in the area A between the parts 1 and 2, in the manner indicated in FIGS. 4, 5 and 6 of the drawings.

As the curve along the edge 8 of the blank 7 is of symmetrical form, so also are the tongues 11 provided and arranged in a symmetrical manner along the edge 10 with respect to the middle of the blank, so as to permit the assembly of the several parts in the symmetrical manner indicated in FIG. 4 of the drawings.

The blank 7 is also provided adjacent the edge 10 and near one end of the blank with a slot 12, and is further provided adjacent the edge 10, and near the other end of the blank, with a series of spaced slots 13. The function of the slots 12 and 13 will be presently explained. The blank 7 is further provided near one end of the blank with a series of spaced slits 14, and with a hook 15 extending from the other end of the blank. The function of the slits 14 and hook 15 will be presently explained.

The blank 7, being made of cardboard or like material is bendable so as to permit it to assume the intended shape for fitting about the head of the user in a snug and comfortable manner and also to permit the tongues 11 to extend substantially parallel with the parts 1 and 2, while the remaining part of the crown may extend at an outwardly diverging angle to the top when the parts are completely assembled, as shown in FIG. 5.

In assembling the crown with the top of the cap, the tongues 11 are bent and inserted into the space, defined by the area A, between the parts 1 and 2, in such a manner as to place the point 9 at the front end of the ovalshaped openings 3 and 5, in line with the major axes of these openings. Then, as the tongues 11 are inserted into position, the crown blank will be bent to conform with the oval-shaped openings, so as to bring the two ends of the blank together at the rear end of the oval-shaped openings, adjacent the tongue 6.

The crown may then be adjusted to fit the head of the wearer, and after such adjustment has been made, the tongue 6 is inserted into the slot 12 and into one of the slots 13, thereby eflectively locking the crown in the adjusted position. After this adjustment has been made, the hook 15 may be inserted into one of the slits 14 and caught in such slit, in order to adjust the lower portion of the crown to the head of the wearer.

If desired, the tongue 6 and slots 12 and 13 may be omitted, in which case, the entire adjustment may be made by means of the slits 14 and hook 15. Alternatively, the adjustment by means of the tongue 6 and slots 12 and *13 may be used, and means, other than the slits 14 and hook 15, utilized to efiect an adjustment of the lower part of the crown.

It may be noted, at this point, that the crown 7, has an inherent tendency to spread apart or open up. This tendency is highly advantageous in that it insures that the tongues 11 will always remain in the space, defined by the area A, between the parts 1 and 2, thereby precluding any possibility of the crown being inadvertently pulled away from the top. Moreover, the edges of the oval-shaped openings 3 and 5 provide a stop which prevents the crown from spreading apart, beyond the limit determined by these edges, and this not only facilitates assembly of the crown with the top, but also facilitates adjustment of the crown.

It is thus seen that we have provided a cap of the charter described, which is made of easily manufactured parts, and of materials which are so inexpensive, as to make the cap disposable, after even a single use thereof.

The cap is highly sanitary, may be easily and quickly assembled by the user, and easily adjusted to fit virtually any head size.

It is understood that the forms of our invention here-. with shown and described, are to be taken as preferred examples of the same, and that various changes may be made in the shape, size and arrangement of parts of our invention, without departing from the spirit of the invention or the scope of the subjoined claims.

We claim:

1. A graduation cap comprising a flat top having an upper part and a lower part, said lower part having a head receiving opening therein, said upper and lower parts being secured to each other in superposed relation with the material of the lower part free from securement to the upper part in the peripheral area circurnscribing the opening in the lower part, a separate head encompassing portion in the form of a strip of material having opposite ends, means for adjustably and detachably connecting together the opposite ends of said strip of material to form a tubular band, radially outwardly projecting means on the upper edge of said tubular band, said radially outwardly projecting means slidably fitting between the upper and lower parts in the peripheral area circumscribin-g the opening in the lower part whereby the head encompassing portion is adjustably connected to the fiat top to accommodate the head size of a wearer.

2. A graduation cap as defined in claim 1 in which the means for adjustably anddeta c hably connecting together the opposite ends of said strip of material comprises a tongue on the lower part of the top projecting radially inwardly of the opening and a plurality of registrable slots adjacent the opposite ends of the strip of material and adjacent the upper edgeof the tubular band, said tongue being adapted to enter a pair of said registrable slots to adjustably secure the tubular band to the top in'accordance with the head size of a wearer.

3. A graduation cap as defined in claim 1 in which the tubular band is wider at one portion on its circumference to form a wide rear crown portion adapted to fit the rear of a wearers head, said strip of material being provided with a slot adjacent the upper edge and disposed therein in predetermined relation to the wide rear crown portion, a tongue on the top projecting radially inwardly of the opening, said tongue being adapted to penetrate the slot in said strip of material and disposed on the top in predeterrnined relation thereto whereby the crown portion and the top portion of the cap are properly positioned in various positions of adjustments of the band.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,934,114 Brander Nov. 7, 1933 2,289,370 Krag July 14, 1942 2,629,874 La Maida Mar. 3, 1955 2,721,329 Berg Oct. 25, 1955 2,899,682 La Maida Aug. 18, 1959 

